The Dark Past
by The-Reile
Summary: What if Bella was a secret agent working for MI6 and the Cullens didn't know. Someone from Bella's past returns and secrets are uncovered. How will the Cullens react when MI6 wants to call Bella back to work? Rating might change. Post Twilight. ON HIATUS!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1.**

**How It All Started?**

I know that I should have told him a long time ago. I should have told all of them, but I couldn't do it. First of all I had signed the Secrecy Act, which I'm bound to keep, and I also have to admit that I was scared. I still am. What would Edward and the rest of the Cullens think, when they find out that I'm not as innocent and weak as I have lead them to believe. They would hate me when I told them that I used to work for the government as a secret agent. As assassin. They would freak out when they would find out that I had risked my life every day by killing terrorists and drug dealers. There was no need to tell them, that I, clumsy Isabella Swan, had travelled around the world and deactivated nuclear bombs in Japan.

It all started when I was born. Very few people know that I was actually born in England and grew up with my uncle Alan. My parents were killed by a terrorist organisation when I was one year old. In their will they had given full custody to my mother's brother and I had inherited quite a fortune. Alan didn't like to talk about them - he said, that it would bring up old memories. I don't know much about my parents, but Alan has told me that they used to work for the British government just like my uncle. For MI6.

Ever since I have been able to walk, my uncle has been training me. He said that it was important to know things about criminals, who are lurking in the shadows, waiting to attack the government. He taught me different languages and traditions in different countries so that I could blend in while travelling and not pull any attention to me. Thanks to Alan I'm an amazing fighter as I have mastered different martial arts and I am also very good with different blades starting from small knives and ending with swords. He taught me how shoot with small arms and how to spy in broad daylight and not to get caught. He said that I was brilliant and meant for the world of assassins.

Even though my childhood wasn't like other children's, I still loved it. I love the way you can hear the wind blowing in your ears when fighting or the way you become one with the gun in your hand while shooting your eyes closed. It makes me feel unstoppable and even though I didn't get along with my uncle all time, I will always be grateful for the things he taught me.

Alan was one the MI6's best agents and he was often sent to missions on the other side of the world and I had to spent a lot of time alone. It made me grow up and become independent rather quickly. I remember the way I always worried that something might happen to him while away and he would never come back. Although he promised that that would never happen, I knew that he could get killed very easily. He was good at what he did and thanks to that he had made many enemies.

It was cold and rainy evening, which was not unusual for London and while living in England ever since I was born, I had gotten used to the constant cloud cover and grey sky. No, it wasn't weather that was bothering me. I was seven years old and Alan had been gone for almost a week. He had told the neighbour that he had to go on a business trip and had asked the old lady living next door to check on me every once in a while, which she had done happily, as she was rather attached to me. The rain was pouring when I saw a police car pull up in front of the house and two officers heading for the door with grim looks on their faces. I knew what was coming and even though I had prepared for this day, I still felt the panic rising in me and my eyes beginning to water. My uncle was dead.

I don't remember much of the next few days. The funeral was a gloomy event with very few people there. Alan had liked his privacy and I'm not even sure if he had friends besides my parents, who could now come and mourn over his dead body. There were couple of men there with black shades covering their eyes and they were wearing cheap black suits. Thanks to Alan's training I knew they had to be from the government. After the funeral one of them came to talk to me, explaining that Alan had written in his will that I should go live with the MI6. They trained me and by the time I was 15, I was one of their best agents. But I was depressed; don't get me wrong. I love what I do, but living in London brought back some very painful memories. MI6 noticed it and they provided a way out. They sent me to the United States to live with Renee and Charlie who had had earlier experiences with MI6 and knew what to expect from me. Unfortunately their marriage was doomed and Charlie went to live in Forks. I soon followed as I wasn't used to the Phoenix's sun. I had a deal with MI6. I could be a normal teenager and not race after terrorists on two conditions. I still had to train on my own and keep myself in good shape and they had the right to send me on missions if someone else wasn't available or when they thought that I was the only one who could handle the job. So here I am.

The Cullens had gone hunting as I had noticed that Edward's eyes had turned coal black - there was no need for him to torture himself with the scent of my blood. I was currently cleaning my gun and thinking how I had abandoned my training. Being with Edward drove me insane. Just a simple touch and I'm a goner. His cool hands and those delicious lips would drive every woman crazy and make them forget the most important things. But, I decided, he isn't here now and I might as well use my chance. I hid my gun in a suitcase, locked it and put the silver case under the open floorboard near the window. I pulled on my sweat pants and sweatshirt, put my hair in ponytail and quietly headed downstairs, so that I wouldn't wake Charlie. I started a slow jog but later sped up. I had missed this. While running I was in my element and no one could stop me.

**********

I jumped over the branch on the path and tried to avoid the dirt covering the forest floor. Yesterday night there had been thunder storm forming puddles on the roads making it difficult to run. It was getting dark and as my night vision wasn't as good as the Cullen's, I couldn't see where I was going. I had rushed through water and my sneakers were soaking wet. But that didn't stop me for pushing myself harder and harder. The speed was exhilarating. Although I wasn't as clumsy as everyone thought I were, I still tripped on the branches on the ground and at some point I had managed to step in a small hole and slip on the ground. I felt a stinging pain in my ankle, but over the years I had gotten used to the pain and I didn't pay any attention to it. I ran miles, and considering the fact that I hadn't worked out properly for a long time, I was pretty pleased with myself. Running back through the forest towards Charlie's house, I couldn't stop thinking that I should run more often, but I remembered that Edward was constantly by my side and would never let me go out running in the dark alone. Don't get me wrong, I love Edward a lot, but sometime he and the rest of the Cullens, even Rose, are a bit too overprotective.

I crept quietly up the stairs so that I would not wake Charlie and made my way over to the bathroom. I took my time enjoying the hot water flowing down my arms and back and inhaling the hot steam in the air. I washed my hair with my strawberry shampoo and after finishing wrapped myself in a white towel. I made my way over to my bedroom and put on my black and white pyjamas. It didn't take long till I fell asleep with a soft smile on my face knowing, that when I wake up in the morning, I would be in Edward's arms, as he promised he would be back before dawn.

**Please review and if you find any mistakes, please let me know. Sorry for any grammar or spelling mistakes as English isn't my native tongue. Also let me know, if you would like me to continue with the story, because there isn't any point for me to write, if anyone isn't reading it.**

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	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**The mail.**

In the morning I was woken by the sun shining through my window and I realised that I had slept rather long. It was probably already noon. I felt strong cold arms around my waist and snuggled closer to Edward, enjoying his scent. It was like peppermint.

"Hey sweetie," he murmured softly. "You slept unusually long. Did you have a tiring day? "

"Not really," I lied. The truth was that my legs were killing me from running as I had forgotten to stretch in my haste to have a hot shower and get to bed. I felt a stinging pain in my ankle and figured I had probably twisted it when I stepped into the hole and slipped. I was pretty sure it was swollen. "I just caught on with my homework and read. Nothing special." I thought it was better not to tell him about my midnight run in the woods. He would probably be worried and lecture me about dangerous animals and kidnappers.

"So what do you want to do today? Alice wanted you to come over. I think she plans to drag you off to shopping or something," seeing the horrified look on my face, Edward continued: "but we could just stay at my place. Charlie isn't at home anyway. I heard him leaving in the morning. He left you a note on the kitchen table and I took the liberty of reading it. He has gone fishing with Billy Black and won't be back before evening."

"Well I better get ready then; we don't want to keep Alice waiting – who knows what she might do," I mumbled the last part quietly and pushed the warm blanket away from me, but left it still covering my legs. Edward had a doctor's eye and I knew he would notice my swollen ankle and start questioning me. But with his super hearing, still heard me and laughed.

"Okay. I'm going to fix you a breakfast. Oh, and there is no need for you to take a sweater; the weather is rather warm. Even hot for Forks." Edward left and I took a quick look at my ankle. It looked awful: it was red from swelling and a big purple bruise was forming. I went through my chest of drawers and found some gauze and bandaged my ankle. I knew it wasn't much, but it was the best I could do. Alan had taught me some basics if I ever needed to take care of an injury, but I didn't have enough supplies and the time to put my leg in a splint.

Quickly I combed my hair and brushed my teeth as I didn't have time to take a shower. It wasn't really necessary as I had taken one the night before. Besides Edward was downstairs and I didn't want to keep him waiting.

As I looked out from the window, I realised that it was a rare day for Forks. There were no clouds in the sky and sun was shining. I hadn't seen the sun for ages and I was happy I could see my favourite vampire sparkling like diamonds again. It truly was a sight to behold, but I figured he would want to stay in the shadows until we were at his place. It would be difficult to explain my neighbours why they had seen my boyfriend sparkling while entering his silver Volvo, which was now waiting for us in the driveway.

I put on my short blue jeans which reached mid-thigh and left my knees bare and a light yellow tank top. I finished my outfit with a pair of white and yellow pumps and put my hair in a messy bun.

As I made my way downstairs, a sweet smell of French toast reached my nostrils and I heard my stomach rumbling; I guess I was hungrier than I thought. Edward was sitting at the table with a plate full of a high pile of toasts and a glass of milk in front of him. Before I could comment about the size of my breakfast, he reached me and pulled me in for a kiss full of passion. I was starting to get dizzy from being without air for so long when he pulled back, his eyes full of humour and love.

"Bells, you look far too tempting and irresistible. It is hard to control myself," he complimented me while letting his eyes roam all over my body with hunger in them.

"Look who's talking. It is much more difficult for me to control myself when it comes to you. You're the one with the charming attitude and great looks," I mumbled quietly not meeting Edward's eyes as I made my way over to the table. I sat down and took a bite of toast savouring its delicious taste and took a sip of cold milk. Once again Edward proved to be an excellent cook. It seems that he can do just about anything. We made small talk during my breakfast and Edward told me Emmett had had a wrestling match with two grizzly bears, which horrified me. Although I had had my fair share of life threatening situations, fighting with grizzly bear and winning the match wasn't one of my accomplishments.

Edward insisted on doing the dishes, which took him less than a minute, while I went upstairs and took my phone and keys. I made sure that when we walked towards his car he was few steps ahead of me, so that he wouldn't see me limping. It hurt as hell and I didn't want to go to a hospital. For a moment I thought I'd let Carlisle take a look, but soon banished the idea as he would like to know what had happened. It probably wouldn't be good for him to know that I had taken a jog at midnight. Besides, Edward could read his mind and find out as well.

Edward opened the door for me and I slipped in. In less than a second he was already sitting next to me and pulling out of the driveway. As usual he drove extremely fast and I pretended to be afraid. Actually I had faced speeds faster than this and I wasn't scared at all. I watched the trees and bushes as we sped by and they lost their shapes and transformed into a green blur. I wished I had taken my sunglasses with me as the sun blinded me and I could not look outside any longer. We reached the Cullen's residence fairly quickly and we were greeted by Alice, who was waiting for us on the front porch.

"Bella!" she shouted with excitement as she bulled me into a bone-crushing hug rivalling one of Emmett's. She sure was strong for a vampire and it became hard for me to breath. Luckily she noticed that she was cutting off my oxygen and released me, only to find myself in another pair of arms in a second, this time belonging to Edward's brother, Emmett.

"Can't breathe," I whispered and Emmett let go of me, grinning sheepishly.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

"It's okay. I'm kind of used to those hugs by now."

Alice, Emmett, Edward and me made our way inside and went to the living room, where I was greeted by Esme, Carlisle, Jasper and even Rose. I don't what Edward and Alice did, but Rosalie's attitude towards me had changed drastically over the past few weeks. She was always polite and even friendly to me.

There was a baseball game on TV and Emmett and Jasper insisted on watching it. I didn't mind as that meant that I could snuggle close to Edward and be in his arms on the couch. Of course Alice had other ideas as she wanted to give me a make-over, but when she saw us all watching TV, she decided to join us and went to sit on Jasper's lap. Even Rosalie joined Emmett. Carlisle went over to his study to probably work and Esme went to work in her garden.

It was about half an hour into the game, when a doorbell rang, making me jump as I was the only one who hadn't heard it. But I could see that everyone else was also interested in knowing who it was, as the Cullens didn't get any mail or invite any friends over. Jasper went to open the door and as everything was so quiet, even I could hear what they were talking about.

"Is this the Cullens residence?" a deep male voice asked.

"Yes, how can I help you?" asked Jasper politely, but I could hear that he was anxious to close the door as sun beams where very close to reaching him. I decided to help him out as I was the only one who doesn't sparkle. I went to the door and saw a tall tanned man in a black suit and dark sunglasses. Behind him was a fancy black car with tinted windows. He was definitely no mailman.

"Are you Isabella Swan?" he asked me as soon as he saw me.

"Depends on who is asking," I said suspiciously as I had no idea who this man was or how he knew my name.

"I think you know who is asking," he answered as he handed me big white envelope with a stamp on it saying "CLASSIFIED".

I took the envelope with shaking hands, mumbling a quick 'thank you' and closed the door as the man walked to his car and sped away.

I paid no attention to Jasper who was looking at me curiously waiting for an explanation. I went back to the living room where everyone looked at me the same way Jasper did. Knowing that I couldn't say anything to them, I asked them to not to ask questions and asked Edward to give me a lift home. I was quiet all the way in the car not looking anywhere but the envelope in my hands. When we reached my place, I gave Edward a quick kiss on the cheek, mumbled 'thanks' and made my way inside. Charlie was not home yet as it was still rather early, which allowed me to think.

Something serious must have happened as they wouldn't send me an envelope otherwise. I must admit that I was a bit excited, but also sad as whatever this envelope contained, it meant that I would probably have to leave for awhile. I looked at the envelope in my hands thinking that MI6 had found me. I was back in the game.


	3. Chapter 3

**I ****really appreciate that so many of you have reviewed, so big thanks to all of you. I won't be answering to all of them, so please don't be offended. Although, **_**Toilet Facility is really lazy**_** asked me if I was writing an Alex Rider crossover. The answer to your question would be no, although I did get some ideas from Alex Rider.**

**Bella won't be meeting someone like James Bond either, because I do not want to mix characters from different book or films.**

**But now, let's get on with the story!**

**PS! I don't own anything. ( unfortunately ) Only Neal .**

**Chapter 3**

**The Visitor**

Chicken, chicken, chicken. Where is it? How come it can be that hard to find chicken in this damn store? I swear I've been walking around the small shop for ages and I cannot find it.

As usual, it was a cloudy afternoon in Forks. I decided to make some chicken for Charlie, because I was getting a bit sick of eating fish all the time. Fish is good, but eating it constantly can be very annoying. I really needed a change, so here I am. Looking for chicken, which seems to have vanished from the shelves. Who knows, maybe it flied away.

As I walked around the store, my thoughts drifted back to yesterday and the letter. When I opened the envelope, a photo of a man in his late twenties fell out. He had dark brown eyes, almost black, and short messy brown hair. I had to admit, that he was rather attractive. I put the photo aside and took the letter. It said that the man's name was Thomas Wilkinson and that he was a drug dealer and transported drugs all over the world. He was currently staying in Seattle, which meant that I wouldn't have to travel far and stay away from Edward for long. As usual, my job was not to find and follow the man or to kidnap him. I had to kill him. Taint my hands with his blood. It was what I was trained for and I was good at it.

Apparently MI6 knows that I am dating Edward, because they gave me an entire month to find Thomas. They must know that I have to make a believable excuse why I am going to Seattle. Month was a long time and Edward probably had to go hunting in that month. The hunting weekend was my chance to get away. I just have to make sure that I am ready. I hope that they will all go together. I don't know what I will do, when Edward goes hunting and leaves someone like Alice to keep an eye on me.

Finally I was so fed up with the store and decided to ask where they stored the chicken. They sent me to the meat and seafood section and after I had gotten my chicken, I made my way over to the cash register, paid for my food and quickly left the shop, promising that I would not do any shopping this week. I swear the cashier was checking me out and looked at least 50 years old.

When I got home, I unpacked my groceries and went upstairs to put away my wallet. When I entered my room, I halted in the doorway, because I saw a silver suitcase on my bed. It was rather similar to my suitcase, which was hidden under the loose floorboard under the window, except for the painted coat of arms on it. It belonged to MI6. Of course I was so curious, that I could not wait and opened the suitcase. Inside was a thick envelope with my name on it – probably more information about Wilkinson. I put it aside for the time being and decided to read it after dinner. There were also different gadgets in the case and two guns with ammo. I hid the envelope under my pillow just in case dad comes in. I put the suitcase under my bed and went downstairs to make dinner, because Charlie would be home in half an hour. While frying the chicken and chopping the tomatoes for the salad, my thoughts drifted to my mission and Edward. What would he do if he found out that I'm working for the British government? Would he be sad? Worried? Angry? After all I have killed people and maybe he would be repulsed by me. Who would want to be with a murderer?

I was so caught up with my brooding, that at first I didn't hear or sense anything. I turned around and grabbed a towel to dry my hands, when I saw a figure in the doorway. The man had messy dirty blonde hair and he was wearing light baggy jeans and white T-shirt, which hugged his body and brought out his muscles. He took off his black sunglasses, which were not necessary in Forks, and I could see his light blue eyes watching me happily.

"Neal?" I asked, my voice merely a whisper.

"Yep. Hi Bells! You are a bit out of shape. I have been standing here for four minutes and you paid no attention to me. If I were a criminal, you'd already be dead," he said jokingly.

"Neal!" I cried and ran to him crushing him in a hug. "It's been so long. What are you doing here?"

"Didn't you read the letter? I'm your partner for this mission." He answered in confusion.

"No, I planned to read it after dinner. And what do you mean by _partner_? I always work alone. Usually I don't even have back up."

"MI6 said that I should look after you, because they didn't want you to get harmed during your holiday. I'm just supposed to help you. Don't worry, you can still do all the dirty work," said Neal happily. He didn't like to kill people himself, but he always liked to see me in action and luckily for him, he could do it during our mission together.

"When MI6 said that they did not want me to get harmed during my holiday, they meant that they think I need help, because I'm out of shape, right?"

"Something like that. You know them well."

"You would know them well, too, if you grew up with them as your guardians." I said a bit bitterly.

"Oh cheer up, will you? It will be fun." He said and then added "You do know, that your chicken is burning, right?"

"Oh shit!" I cried and ran to take the pan away from the stove. Luckily, it wasn't very burned and still edible.

Neal and I had dinner and I left some leftovers for Charlie in the fridge. During dinner Neal and I shared stories about what we had been up to and Neal said that MI6 will send my car within next two days along with some more gear, mainly my guns and tracking devices. Neal promised to come back to go over some details about the mission tomorrow and left few minutes before Charlie arrived. I warmed up his dinner and went upstairs to have a shower and went to bed. I opened the envelope and read the letter. Neal had been right: they told me in the letter that I would have a partner to pack me up and help me carry my gear if necessary. That made me smile, because that meant that I could make Neal carry all my stuff and I could just walk like a royalty with my hands free. There was also a detailed description about Thomas Wilkinson and his work and family and an address where MI6 think he could be staying.

I turned off the light and pulled the covers up my chin. Now I knew everything about my upcoming mission and I could not be more excited about it. Even though I had been happy to have a holiday and stay out of the action for so long, I also wanted to go back. I missed the thrill.

Before I fell asleep, I thought about Edward and his family. It6 was a bit strange, that they hadn't questioned me about the envelope which I received at their place and I also hadn't seen any of them for an entire day, which was very uncommon. I missed them, but I was also happy, because I couldn't think what I should tell them. Obviously I could not tell them the truth. Now I just had to think of a believable lie.

**It was mainly a filler, there was not any action. So tell me your ideas, why any of the Cullens had not contacted Bella. Sorry if there were any mistakes. I didn't have to time to check it as I wanted to update as soon as possible. I won't be updating for about 5 days as I will be out of town and I won't have any access to a computer. Sorry.**

**But please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

EPOV

I had given Bella a lift home and drove back to my place. I was still thinking about Bella's weird behaviour earlier. Someone had given her a letter, which had upset her in some way and she had refused to tell us anything about it. The man, who had brought the letter, had known Bella's name, which was a bit strange. How did they know each other?

When I reached home, I went immediately to the living-room, because the rest of my family was waiting for me there. They were all sitting on the couches and even Esme and Carlisle had stopped their work and joined the rest of the family.

"Okay, what is going on? Who was that man?" Emmett asked everyone with a confused look on his face, which made him look like a little toddler.

"I think everyone would like to know that, son," said Carlisle in his usual calm manner, but even his eyes were full of curiosity.

I let my eyes wonder over their faces and saw that everyone of them was confused and a bit worried. Except Jasper. He looked as if he was deep in thought, but he was blocking his mind from me, so I didn't have any idea what was going on in his mind. In his eyes, I could see some worry.

"Jasper, what is it?" I wanted to know.

"It's just that... the man who brought the letter, there was something military-like about him. His whole posture was something you could usually see in the army. He was holding his body as if he was seeing someone in the higher rank than him. As if he was talking to someone like a sergeant. It was a bit strange. First of all, why would he act like that in front of Bella and second, how did he even know who she was? When Bella came to the door, he immediately asked, if she was Isabella Swan and when Bella wanted to know, who he was, he just said 'I think you know'. I don't get it. What's going on?"

"I don't think there is anyone in this room who understands what is going on, Jazz." said Alice soothingly.

"Didn't you see anything, Alice? Didn't you have any visions?" I wanted to know.

"No nothing. When you took Bella home, I tried to look into her future, but I could not see a thing. It was not like her future disappeared, I just could not see it. It has never happened to me before." I could hear from her voice that she was a bit pissed off because of it; she did not like to be kept in the dark. Usually she was the first one to know everything.

At first I was surprised when Alice told us that she could not see Bella's future, but now that I think of it, it's not that strange at all. She does have a strong protection against vampire's powers. Maybe Alice could not see her future because of the same reasons that I could not hear her thoughts. I shared my theory with everyone else and they agreed to me in some degree, but Carlisle still wanted to know why Alice has always been able to see Bella's future until now. No-one knew the answer to that question and I added it to my growing list of things that still need answers. I should talk to Bella, she might know some answers. I hoped that she would tell me what was in the envelope. I tried to guess its contents while we drove to her place, but I did not have any ideas as I did not know anything about it.

"Jasper, what did you see? What did the envelope look like? Maybe then we could guess who was it from and what was in it?"

"Well, it was rather big and there was a stamp on it saying..." his voice drifted away.

"What? What did the stamp say?" I asked impatiently and I saw that the rest of my family was also anxious to hear the answer to that question. Damn, I wish I could read his mind right now.

"It said CLASSIFIED. I think that the envelope came from the government." he whispered in a quiet, but steady voice.

"From the government?" I asked incredulously.

"Yep. That would explain why she did not answer our questions. It was probably something very important. We should give her some space to work things out. If she did not tell us a thing about it, she probably does not want us to know. "

"So you want us to leave her alone?!" I asked angrily. If the envelope said CLASSIFIED and was from the government, it could have been something serious and she could be in danger, I needed to protect my love, not leave her alone.

Jasper could probably see that I was growing angrier by the second and quickly continued: "Only for a day. She can have tomorrow to do what she wants. We won't try to see her future or read the minds of the people close to her. Then, the day after tomorrow, we all go and see her and ask for an explanation. If she can't answer to all of our questions then we won't press it, okay?"

I did not like to spend the day away from her as we had just spent the weekend hunting, but nodded. The plan seemed reasonable.

"Okay. That's settled then." said Alice, having got back her usual bubbly and happy mood.

The next day passed excruciatingly slowly. I had nothing to occupy my time with and my thoughts drifted constantly back to Bella and to what she was doing. I wanted to be with her and to make her laugh and most of all, I wanted answers. I had never seen Bella acting like this before. Usually, when she had something troubling her mind, we always talked about it, but now she was all alone. I was very interested in the contents of the envelope, but I understood that if it was serious, then Bella needed some time to work things out.

At some point, I was so fed up with my house that I decided to have a quick run. I found myself running in the direction of our meadow and I spent the afternoon lying on the ground and staring at the clouds. I heard the birds singing and animals wandering around the forest, but I paid no attention to them. Instead I emptied my mind. I spent the rest of my day doing absolutely nothing.

When I finally moved, the sun had set and it was very dark. If I hadn't been a vampire, I would not have been able to see even my fingers. I ran to Bella's house and went to her room through the open window. When I got to her room, my nostrils were immediately filled with the smell of freesias and strawberries, but besides that I also smelled someone new. It was not Charlie either and not anyone from our school. I'm sure, I would have recognised everyone from Forks, but this scent was definitely new to me. It was human, though. I added this new smell to the list of unknown things to me and decided not to dwell on it. But in the morning I would ask Bella everything about the envelope and the person in her house.

Tomorrow, Bella would face questioning and we will get some answers.

**AN.**

**Sorry for the long wait and the short chapter. I have been really busy the last couple of days and I didn't have time to write. **

**I also have another bad news to all of you reading this story. I will be going to Paris for two weeks and I won't be updating during that time. I'm very sorry, guys!**

**Thank you all for your reviews and please write me your comments on the chapter and some new ideas. Thank you Kirsten Evans for your fantastic ideas for the story. I really appreciate it.**

**REVIEW.**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The Questioning

I woke to the feeling that somebody was playing with my hair and soon I felt somebody's cold hands around my waist. Edward. So he came back. I wonder where he was yesterday. Although I had a lot on my mind the day before, I still missed him.

I was always happy when he was around, but lately I was also a bit anxious. What if he found out about the objects hidden under the open floorboard. What would he think of me? I decided to push back the unnerving thoughts and turned around to face him.

"Morning" I said sleepily, rubbing my eyes to get rid of the sleep.

"Morning" he replied with a dashing smile which made my knees weak. If I had been standing, I probably would have fallen down. God, sometimes I hate the effect he has on me. In those times I don't feel like one of the best agents working for MI6. Seeing that smile turns me into teenage girl when she meets her favourite singer. I turn into a puddle of goo.

"Where were you yesterday?" I wanted to know.

I saw something in his eyes, which looked like expectation to me. He was looking forward to something and somehow it unnerved me. What is he waiting for?

"I was a bit busy yesterday. But don't worry. I'll make it up to you today. We'll spend the day together. Although at some point my family will come over. They would like to have a word."

"About what?" his revelation caused me to worry even more. What if they wanted to talk about the envelope, which I received at their place. The man who brought the letter to me was a bit too official looking and may have caused some questions. A part of me is also sure that Jasper saw the stamp on it.

"Nothing serious. They'll be over in an hour." I noticed he evaded my question and that made me worry even more. I'm pretty sure now, that they wanted to talk about my job.

"Ok. I'll better get dressed now" I said. I decided to take a long hot shower as well. I needed some time to make up story and get my facts straight. I probably needed to work on controlling my emotions as well or Jasper could tell that I'm lying.

"Sure. I'll go and fix you a quick breakfast. Any special wishes?" he inquired.

"Well, I am rather fond of your French toast." I answered smilingly.

"French toast it is" he said and went downstairs heading towards the kitchen.

I went through my closet and found a pair of white skinny jeans, blue tank top, blue pumps and white jacket for the day. I also chose blue necklace and earrings. I headed towards the bathroom and I could smell the delicious smell of French toast coming from the kitchen. God, I love a man who can cook.

I took my time in the shower. I washed my hair with my strawberry shampoo and I also used my coconut shower gel to wash all the sleep off my body. I thought about what I could tell the Cullens about the envelope and its contents. I could tell that it was a letter for my dad and the man could not find my dad and gave the letter to me instead. But the Cullens would not probably believe my story as the letter was addressed to me. Or I could tell them that it was a letter from my mum and she liked to play jokes on me and put the stamp saying CLASSIFIED on it on purpose. That was a bit more believable than the story about the letter belonging to my dad, but then the Cullens would probably like to know what my mum sent me.

It's hopeless. I thought. They would never believe me and I had no other ideas what to tell them. I probably had to improvise when they start questioning me.

I blow dried my hair and put my clothes on. I applied some cherry lip gloss and put on a silver circlet.

I remembered that Neal should come over today and hoped that he would not meet the Cullens. Edward and the rest of them might have some more questions about Neal and I was not sure that I could make up believable lies in front of them.

After I was dressed, I went downstairs knowing that I had a delicious meal waiting for me. When I reached the kitchen, I saw Edward sitting under the window and looking at the trees outside. When I sat down, he looked towards me with a thoughtful look and smiled.

"You look beautiful." he complimented me and then added "Blue really suits you."

It is unbelievable that I could control my emotions always so well, but I could never control my blushing. It really bothers me. I mean, who would like to look like a tomato every time someone makes a comment about you?

"Thanks." I said, taking a small bite and taking a sip of the cold orange juice he had poured for me. "It's delicious as always, you know" I said, gesturing towards the French toast.

"Thanks. Anything for you, love." Edward said sweetly.

"How come you know how to cook? I mean you obviously can't remember the tastes from your childhood and now everything tastes like dirt to you. How can you cook something this tasty without tasting it?" I asked curiously as this was something I had thought about before.

"Just trusting my guts, I guess. I probably get lucky while cooking and know when to stop adding something to the food." he said while shrugging.

"Hmm." I said taking another big bite from the toast. "So when did you say your family will come over?" I inquired. I wanted to know how much time do I have before I had to make up stories and lies. I was also dreading the answer as I did not have an idea what to tell them.

"They should be here in half an hour." Edward answered, which surprised me. Time always flies when I'm with Edward and the shower must have taken longer than I thought.

I finished my breakfast slowly making occasional small talk with Edward, but I was not really concentrating on it. I thought about Neal and his promise to come over today. I hope he won't come when the Cullens are here; it might cause some more questions and I was not really ready to answer to any of them. I remember that Neal promised to come and bring me some more equipment and gadgets for the mission and I hoped that he would bring my silver Lamborghini. I was very fond of that car as it has saved my life couple of times thanks to its speed. MI6 had paid me enough after a rather dangerous mission in France when I had to disarm a bomb in the city centre and with that money I decided to buy myself a car.

When I was done eating, Edward insisted on doing the dishes, but as I wanted to push away the thoughts of the questioning, I decided to dry them with an old striped towel Charlie had kept in the cupboard.

"They're here." Edward said as I was drying a glass. I tried to listen, but my weak human ears could not hear the sound of a car pulling up the driveway or the sound of footsteps nearing the door.

Suddenly I heard the doorbell ringing and less than a second later Edward was opening the door for his family. I saw Alice heading towards the kitchen and pulled me into a small hug, her black spiky hair hiding the rest of her family from the view, but I could hear Emmett's booming "Hiya Bells!" from the doorway.

"Hi Em." I said happily. Even his voice and joking manner could cheer me up in a matter of seconds.

When Alice released me form her embrace I greeted Jasper and Rosalie as well. During the last couple of weeks Rose has been more polite towards me. We weren't friends by no means, but we were rather civil towards each other, which had pleased Edward greatly.

"So guys, what's up?" I tried to ask them cheerfully, but I probably did not succeed as I saw Jasper looking at me closely. "Edward said you wanted to have a word."

"Yeah, we did." said Carlisle who came in later than the others guiding Esme in as well. I had hoped that they would not come. Lying to them was even a bit worse than telling made-up stories to the rest of them, as Esme and Carlisle were like parent figures to me. Lying to them seemed wrong. "Shall we head for the living-room, then?"

I nodded my head and hopped on the couch and waited till the rest of them had sat down as well. Edward chose a seat next to me and put his cool arm around my waist, but even that could not calm me down. I'm sure the Cullens could hear my heart beating thousand times a second. I'm surprised it had not burst out of my chest yet.

"What do you wanted to talk to me about?" I said, worry evident in my voice.

"Well, you received an envelope few days ago which interested all of us. Do you care do elaborate what was in it and who sent it?" the moment Carlisle started forming his question I knew I was in trouble. There's no way I could make up a story in a matter of seconds that they would believe and for obvious reasons I couldn't tell them the truth. I put on my poker face and decided not to lie to them, but not to tell them the truth either.

"Sorry, but I can't. I consider you all my family, but everyone has secrets and I do not wish to spill all of mine to you. I really hope that you understand that and let me keep some things only known to me." I answered in a quiet and desperate voice which was nothing more than a whisper, but I knew that the Cullens could all hear me clearly.

I looked into their eyes and I could see curiosity and in some cases, disappointment as well. I knew that they all cared for me and want what's best for me.

"Ok, we understand that." Said Carlisle thoughtfully and then continued "But if you ever want to talk about it, you do know that we are all here for you, right?"

I nodded.

"I can smell that someone has been to you house. A man. Do you have any idea who that was?" Edward wanted to know.

Oh. My. God. I never even thought about the fact that the Cullens could sense Neal.

"Oh, he is just a friend of mine. His name is Neal. He just came from Phoenix to visit me. Wanted to see how I'm doing and stuff. He has also met Charlie before so they are planning to go fishing soon. That's all." From the looks I could see that they really did not believe me, but there isn't anything I could do about it now. All I can do is to hope that they will leave soon and stop the questioning.

"Can I meet him? I'd like to meet some of friends from Phoenix." Said Emmett, which surprised me as he has never been interested in my friends before.

"Umm, sure. I have to speak with him first. I'm not sure for how long he is staying. But I'm sure that he would not mind." I made a note in my mind to order Neal leave Forks immediately and go to Port Angeles. What would happen if Neal would meet any of the Cullens, especially Edward. He could read Neal's mind and then I would be in deep trouble.

"Well, now that that's settled, I think we are ready to go." Said Jasper making me sigh with relief in my mind. Thank God, it was over.

One by one they left the house leaving me alone with Edward.  
"So what do you wants to do today?" He asked making me smile. The difficult part was over. Now, I just had to make sure that Edward and Neal would never meet.

**AN Yey, I'm back. This is the longest chapter I have ever written, but sorry if there are any mistakes or if it is a bit rushed. I wanted to post it as soon as possible for you and I did not check it.**

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

**Port Angeles**

During the next few days, life went on as normal. I knew that the Cullens would still like to know about my letter, but they had not pestered me about it. My work was at complete standstill as I could not do a thing about Thomas Wilkinson with Edward and the rest of the Cullens constantly around.

School went on as usual and I often sound myself day dreaming in classes about going to Port Angeles and beating the crap out of the drug dealer. Also I couldn't help but to think that there was something that MI6 had not told me and Neal about my mission. It didn't really make sense to hire an agent like me to deal with a drug dealer. Usually they just follow the dealer around to find out how, where and who does he work with, and then, when they have gathered enough evidence against the guy, they just arrest him. Hiring a secret agent to do a job like that seems a bit extreme.

Neal had rented a house near my school to be closer to me and we kept constant contact. My car along with the rest of my gear and the files were also at his place so there was not any danger of Edward finding my stuff. Neal had gone to Port Angeles to snoop around and had managed to put a tracking device on Wilkinson's car, so now we know where does he work and we also know the places he visits the most. One of those places turned out to be an old warehouse outside the city and Neal and I were pretty sure that the warehouse might be imprtant. Neal had offered to look around the place alone, but I had turned that idea down as quickly as possible, claiming that it was too dangerous for him to go there alone. Another reason was that I did not want to be left out of the loop as he had already done everything necessary so far and it was actually supposed to be my mission. I admit that I was eager to get back to work.

It was a sunny Wednesday, which was pretty rare for Forks and once again I had to go to school without the Cullens by my side. My last class of the day, P.E., where I had to pretend to be awfully clumsy while playing volley-ball, had just ended and I was heading for my truck in the parking lot, when I heard Neal's familiar voice calling for me. He was standing next to his black Ferrari, which had caught the attention of many students. I made my way over the parking lot and noticed the sour look on his face.

"What's wrong?" I asked immediately, dropping all the pleasantries. Something bad must have happened.

"We are running out of time," he said with a significant look, leaving me confused.

"What are you talking about? We still have three weeks left." I exclaimed rather loudly catching the attention of those still admiring Neal's car. I lowered my voice and continued "Has something bad happened?"

"I don't know why, but MI6 has brought up the deadline," he whispered, making sure that we were not overheard. "Wilkinson has to be killed or caught before the end of the next week."

"But that leaves us only a bit over a week. We do not have enough time. We do not know whether the warehouse is even important!" I whispered quite angrily.

"That's exactly why we are going to check that place now. You said in the morning that your boyfriend is away with his family for the day, so you do not have to worry about him anymore. And you can easily tell Charlie the truth when we get back." Neal reasoned.

I knew that Neal was right and considering the fact that we now had less than two weeks to do the job we really had to get to work. We got in the car and Neal drove to his place – rather recklessly, I might add, completely ignoring all the speed limits and red lights.

When we got to his place I saw a beautiful two-storey white house with a rather big backyard and flowerbeds in front of the house and looking at it, you could never tell that the insides of the house were less than innocent. We had turned the basement into an armoury. There were weapons starting from small handguns and ending with bombs powerful enough to destroy a small skyscraper.

The garage was expanded underground and could now easily fit three to six cars, depending on their size. We parked Neal's Ferrari there and we were going to check out the warehouse with my car, meaning that I could drive. I could tell that Neal was not very happy about it as he knew that I was even more reckless driver than him.

I went upstairs to the guest bedroom, which was filled with my stuff. There were my favourite clothes to wear during a mission and also my gadgets and couple of guns with ammo. I decided to wear a black one-piece, which was so tight that it was more like a second skin to me. I had to admit that I rather liked the effect it had on my body as it bought out my curves and immediately brought the attention to my cleavage. I strapped gun holsters around both of my thighs and loaded my guns. I also braided my hair so that they would not get in my way in case we got in a fight and decided to wear black sunglasses just for the fun of it. I probably won't need them to protect my eyes against the sun, because according to the weather forecast, it was a cloudy day in Port Angeles, but the glasses were not that ordinary as one might think. Behind my left ear, there was a small button and by pushing it, I could take a photo of the scene I'm currently looking at. It might prove to be useful, when we see someone working for or with Wilkinson. That way we can give MI6 evidence to arrest Wilkinson's accomplice.

I took a final glance in the mirror and when I was sure that I had not left anything behind, made my way downstairs to the living-room, where I found Neal sitting on the couch waiting for me. He, too, had decided to wear black for the trip and he was carrying a medium sized bag, probably to carry all the gadgets necessary for the job.

"Ready to go?" he asked and I could hear from his voice that he was just as excited and eager to get to work than I was.

"Yep. Let's get going." I said and we went to the garage to get my car. Neal dropped the bag on his lap as he sat to the passenger seat, put on his seatbelt mumbling something about 'reckless driving' and 'is going to crash into a tree'. I couldn't stop smirking as I drove out of the driveway into the street and sped down the road.

The drive to Port Angeles went by quickly and Neal let me know everything he had noticed about the warehouse and gave me a brief lecture about the warehouse's entrances and blueprints.

The drive, filled with Neal's constant talking, took about 45 minutes and by the time we got to the warehouse, I had developed a rather strong headache. I had forgotten how much Neal loved to talk.

I parked the car couple hundred meters away from the warehouse, so that it was hidden behind trees and bushes and stepped out of the car.

The warehouse was huge, made of metal and extremely creepy-looking. Judging by the few places the metal hadn't worn off yet, you could see that the building used to be a light shade of grey, lighter than the metal itself. It seemed that the town's young artist had discovered the place some time ago, as parts of the walls were covered with graffiti; with both pictures and profanities. The few windows in the upper part of the warehouse were sealed off with wooden panels. All that made the abandoned warehouse look rather ominous.

There were very few people in the world, who knew that the graffiti-covered house was not that abandoned at all and two of those people were nearing it. Bella and Neal were walking towards the warehouse, on guard and ready to attack and also defend themselves on a moment's notice. They neared the huge metal door and discovered it locked with metals chains and padlock.

"Great! Now how are we going to get in?" asked Bella.

"I'll go check around the warehouse whether there is someone here. If not, we can shoot the lock open," said Neal and ran off to check the other side of the building. He was back in less than a minute, slightly out of breath from running and said the coast was clear. Bella took her gun Colt 1991 Commander out of its holster and after two shots the padlock was open and Bella ripped the chains off. Neal opened the door making the metal creak and they entered.

Inside the warehouse didn't look any better, although instead of graffiti you could see possibly hundreds of boxes piled on top of each other. Bella and Neal exchanged a glance, both knowing that Thomas Wilkinson was no ordinary drug dealer, but involved in something much bigger.

Neal used a hand sign to let Bella know that they should split up and search the building. Bella nodded to let him know she agreed and headed left leaving the right side to Neal.

Aside from the hundreds of boxes and dust, the warehouse was empty. Bella went to one of the boxes and took out her pocket knife, cut the duck-tape and opened the box. What Bella saw inside made her gasp and she reached for another box; another and another. After opening six boxes she realised that the content of all the boxes was probably the same. She ran back to the door and passed it, trying to find Neal. Luckily it took he less time than she had predicted half-yelled and half-whispered to her partner, who was also examining the insides of one of the boxes:

"Did you see? They are all filled with guns!"

"Not just guns, bells," Neal answered "Bombs as well." He tilted the box so that Bella could see inside. It looked like MI6 hadn't mentioned that besides dealing with drugs, Wilkinson was also an arms dealer.

"Oh shit," was all that Bella could say to describe the situation they were in. "What on earth is he doing with all of these?"

"Sell them?" guessed Neal, my oh-so-clever brother in arms.

"To who?"

"Not sure, but I'm sure the buyer is up to no good."

Before I could form my sarcastic comment about people with guns and explosives doing good, I heard a sound that chilled the blood in my veins. It was a quiet hum of an engine, so quiet that only vampires could hear it. While neither Neal nor I was a vampire, we had been trained to hear the quietest of sounds and now I thanked the gods that I had honed that skill to perfection.

From the look on Neal's face I understood that he had heard the purr of engine as well. From Neal's lap around the warehouse and from our explorations inside I knew there was only one entrance and exit and that one was out the question.

"Hide! Now!" I whisper-yelled to Neal and pulled him with me. Through the maze of boxes I managed to reach the corner of the warehouse. Neal quietly pulled a pile of boxes in front of us, so that we were hidden directly from view. However if somebody started to search properly, they would probably find us.

Frome the voices outside and the sound of footsteps there were probably 4 to 6 people coming towards the building. The steps were quite heavy so I concluded that they were all men. The creak of the metal door and then the sound of the footsteps echoed around us. They were inside.

"How many did he want, sir?" asked a deep baritone.

"30. It should be six boxes. Take them to the car. You, David, help him. And make it quick. Mr. Winston doesn't like to be kept waiting," ordered another man.

"Yes, boss," answered the same deep voice.

Boss? Thomas Wilkinson, maybe? I shot a glance at Neal to see that he was one the same wavelength as me.

There was a scuffle of footsteps, sound of boxes being picked up and some more footsteps. I wished I could see what was going on and that I could take photos of the men working for Wilkinson. I knew that Neal had also packed his camera, which looked like a long pencil. I could raise it above my head and film over the boxes and the men probably wouldn't notice it, but one glance at Neal told me he had left his bag in the car. _Car! OH MY GOD! What if the men noticed it and realised somebody was here!_

_My fears were confirmed._

"Boss, check this out!"

"What is it, Tony?" asked the man I thought to be Wilkinson.

The man, Tony, answered: "There are two duck shots by the door."

I gasped, receiving a slight jab by the elbow beneath my ribs. I had totally forgotten to pick those up after I shot the padlock.

At once Thomas Wilkinson was on guard and giving orders: "Close the door and search the place. You two scan the area. The owner of the car might still be here."

Neal and I were as quiet as possible as we listened to footsteps, which eventually neared our hiding place. One of the men, bald and dark-skinned, neared us, but luckily didn't notice us. Just as he was about to leave and had already turned his back to us, Neal revealed himself as he jumped out of our hiding place. He grabbed the man from behind and covered his mouth with his hand, threw the man's gun to me and pushed him to the ground. Neal cut of his air supply by grabbing his throat, intending to choke him to death.

"It's all clear here!"

"Same here, sir! Came voices from the other side of the warehouse.

"There is no-one outside."

"Report, Tony!" ordered Wilkinson.

"Anthony?" "Tony!" echoed voices, but the man – Tony – under Neal was unable to respond. He tried to pry Neal's fingers away from his throat, but his hands were too weak due to the lack of oxygen. Final effort to save his life, one last twitch of his legs and he was still. He was dead. One down, at least five to go.

I checked and saw that Anthony-the-Dead-Man's gun was fully loaded and luckily it also had a silencer. Bingo!

Neal and I made our way towards the men. We saw Thomas Wilkinson heading towards the door and I knew that we couldn't let him leave. So I threw all caution to the wind and opened fire. The first bullet missed his head by an inch and I had revealed my location for nothing. The sound of gunfire put all men an alert and after seeing us, they opened fire. Neal and I found cover behind the boxes and while Neal tried to bring down the other man, I aimed for the Big Guy. After my first missed Thomas, he, too, took out his gun and after trying to bring me down unsuccessfully, he tried to escape. _Coward, _I thought.

"Cover for me!" I yelled to Neal through the gunfire and after receiving a nod in return, I left the cover of boxes and ran off after Wilkinson. By that time Neal with his superb shooting skills and aim had managed to take down 3 of the men and I heard the 4th scream out in pain as the bullet hit him, when I was already at the door.

The first thing I saw was Wilkinson's black van. He was sitting next to the driver, who was a rather bulky man, and I managed to lip-read that he was telling the driver to hurry up. I ran toward the car while shooting at the front glass. Unfortunately, it turned out to be bulletproof (should have thought of that) and I had wasted all the bullets. I threw down Anthony's gun and just as I was about to take my own gun out of its holster, I felt a burning pain in my abdomen. I looked down and saw a small hole in my black one-piece. The area around the hole was steadily getting wetter and darker. I instinctively put my hand to it and saw that my hand was covered in red fluid. Blood. _The bastard shot me!_

"Bella!" I heard Neal's voice behind me and then felt his arms around my waist, supporting my weight. He had probably run out soon after me. I looked up and saw the van driving away, Wilkinson smirking at me from the side-view mirror, memorizing my face.

"Oh Jesus, Bella," said Neal. "We have to get you to the hospital. You are losing far too much blood."

"No. No hospital," I told him resolutely.

"But, Bella..."

"Definitely not. I can't have my name along with a bullet wound in my hospital record. Someone could find out. You do it. Take the bullet out and stitch me back together." I knew he couldn't argue with my reasoning.

"Are you sure?" After receiving a nod in response, he sighed and asked: "Can you walk?"

Not trusting my voice, I nodded again. Truth be told, I was in tremendous pain. With Neal's help and support we slowly walked back to the car. I lied down onto the back seat while Neal looked for a first aid kit from his bag. He helped me take off the one-piece from my upper body and left it hanging at my hips, revealing my black lacy bag. Now was no time to be modest and he had seen me in my underwear before. Besides I knew I had nothing to ashamed of.

He carefully cleaned the wound and told me to prepare myself. I shut my eyes and clenched my fists tightly, my nails leaving half-moon imprints into the flesh. He took out the bullet with a pair of tweezers, making me gasp out in pain. Luckily now the worst part was over and I barely felt when he stitched me up.

"Wow, you are rather brave," he complimented me. "Grown men have yelled out in pain, when they have to go through that without an anaesthetic."

"Not brave, just used to it. I've always had a high tolerance of pain," I replied quietly, not quite trusting my voice yet not to crack. Thinking back to the reasons why the pain didn't bother me that much brought back some bad memories.

While I was pulling myself together on the back seat, Neal called MI6 and let them know what had happened and to send someone to pick up the bodies. He then packed the first aid kit and sat in the driver's seat, saying that I was in no condition to drive. I had to agree with him and after getting in the front seat, we were off, heading back to Forks,

"Well, at least one good thing came from all of this," I said.

"Yeah, the 4 dead guys," came Neal's answer from his now smiling mouth.

"Besides that," I said chuckling and stopping quickly because of the pain. Neal noticed my grimace and told me to get a painkiller from the glove compartment. After swallowing 2 dry, I continued: "We got ourselves a name. Some guy called Mr. Winston."

"I'll see what I kind find out about him," promised Neal.

As I watched the green trees passing by, I couldn't keep my eyes open anymore and fell asleep; I knew Neal would wake me up before we reached the house he had bought. Right now Thomas Wilkinson getting away didn't matter, nor did the fact that I had to come up with a story to tell Edward about where I had been for the last six hours. All that mattered was getting the utter exhaustion out of my body.

What a Wednesday!


End file.
